Tayler Gray was named McNeese volleyball head coach on December 10, 2025, becoming the 14th head coach in program history.
Gray, a former Sam Houston assistant coach spent two stints with the Bearkats following a short stint as assistant coach at UT-Arlington.
Gray has spent a total of 16 years at Sam Houston, both as a student-athlete and a member of the coaching staff. She has also served as a Health and Kinesiology adjunct professor since 2014.
From 2014-2020, she was a member of a Sam Houston staff that accumulated 87 SLC wins, several all-conference selections, 10 student-athletes were named to the All-Academic Team, two Student-Athletes of the Year and over 25 Player of the Week honors.
In 2019 Sam Houston advanced to the second round of the NIVC and in 2020 advanced to the WAC Championship.
The dual-sport athlete was a member of the volleyball team from 2010-13 and the softball team from 2011-14. Gray was a member of the 2012 Southland Conference Volleyball Championship team, a two-time all-SLC performer on the volleyball court where she earned All-SLC first team honors in 2012 and second team honors in 2013. She was named team MVP in 2012 and 2013 and was selected Sam Houston’s Female Athlete of the Year in 2013.
In the classroom, Gray was twice named to the SLC All-Academic team (2012, 2013) and served on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee both those years.
She concluded her volleyball playing career with 2,352 assists, where she still ranks in the Top 10 at Sam Houston.
Gray also spent one season (2018-2019) as an assistant coach at UT-Arlington before returning to Sam Houston.
Gray also has experience on the national level, serving as assistant coach for the 2024 USAV All-Star Championship (17U Team).
Gray graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Public Health (2013) along with two master’s degrees, Master of Arts in Health (2015) and a Master of Business Administration (2020), all from Sam Houston.
COLLEGIATE COACHING EXPERIENCE
2014-2025 Assistant Coach, Sam Houston
2018-2019 Assistant Coach, UT-Arlington
PLAYING EXPERIENCE
2010-2013 Sam Houston (VB)
2011-2014 Sam Houston (SB)
HONORS
2013 All-SLC (1st team/VB)
2012 All-SLC (2nd team/VB)
EDUCATION
2020 Master of Business Administration (Sam Houston)
2015 Master of Arts in Health (Sam Houston)
2013 Bachelor of Science in Public Health/Minor in Psychology (Sam Houston)
